Brothers in Arms
by madamwolf
Summary: Takes place after Song Remains the Same, Castiel wakes up in the motel and has a conversation with Sam and Dean regarding family.


**AN:** I feel bad writing this since I still have a few other fics from different fandoms to finish but I needed something to occupy myself with during my Western Civilization II class, my professor has the most deadpan voice ever. I was about ready to rip my hair out in that class, I needed my three boys to entertain me… lol… right after I typed that I began laughing, shows how dirty my mind is, huh? So, anyway, I started writing this bit, hope ya like, it shall remain a oneshot.

**Disclaimer:** Sadly I don't own the boys nor do I own Castiel… It's tragic. I'm just "borrowing" them,

**Characters:** Dean, Sam and Castiel.

**Pairings:** None

**Warnings:** Slight spoilers for Song Remains the Same.

**Timeline:** Takes place after Song Remains the Same.

**Brothers in Arms**

There was absolutely nothing on TV Dean decided as he flipped aimlessly through the limited channels on the motel television. There was a lame horror movie but he wasn't in the mood for any of that right now. One of the Back to the Future movies was on another channel and needless to say no one in the room wanted to see that, at least not right now, they still needed to recover from their own resent time travel experiences. Dean kept giving nervous glances in Castiel's direction, he still hadn't waken up and it was beginning to worry him. The Angel should have been awake by now, or at least showing some sort of sign that he was alive.

Sam has just announced he was going to jump in the shower when Dean began his third time round on the channel surfing, hoping to have missed something good. When he reached channel seven he stole another glance at Castiel, this time doing a double take when he caught his friend shifting in the bed.

"Sam?" He called out shutting off the television and switching beds just as Castiel released a gurgled moaned and rolled off his back to he could begin to coughing painfully into the crook of his arm.

"Sam! Cas is awake!" Dean said again as he hauled the Angel into a sitting position to make it easier.

Sam appeared out of the bathroom in a flash, he was still fully clothed and the shower had not yet begun to run so it was safe to assume he had not gotten far in his routine. On the way over he grabbed one of the white motel towels off the counter and handed it to Castiel who took it gratefully unable to say his thanks before another coughing fit hit him.

The brothers exchanged worried glances at the blood which now speckled the towel; they weren't sure if it was fresh blood or if his internal wounds had healed and it was old. Like Dean had said earlier when they first realized Castiel's weakened state neither of them were 'Doctor Angel-Medicine Woman'.

Finally after a few moments the coughing ceased and Cas was left sitting between the brothers panting and clutching the towel in his hand in case of another attack.

"Are you okay?" Sam finally asked.

Castiel's eye flicked toward him and then over to Dean who was showing similar concerns, he glanced down at the towel in his hands before answering. "Yes," he looked back up at them. "I'm fine." He replied weakly.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Yeah," he scoffed. "That's what you said last time and you ended up puking blood."

Cas thought for a moment until he remembered clearly, everything was a tad bit fuzzy now but the longer he was awake the clearer things became.

"Yes," he finally said. "Due to our presence here it is safe to assume you succeeded in destroying Anna." He said changing the subject matter. "I'm glad."

"Yeah," Sam said looking down for a moment. "And I'm glad you managed to make it back, we were worried there for a while."

"You needn't be I would have made it back eventually, regardless."

Dean glared at Castiel. "You should have taken longer to recover, you had that room for five nights." He was trying to sound harsh but couldn't manage it. "We had you taken care of, man."

"I wanted to return as soon as possible." He said exchanging looks between the two brothers.

"You could at least have waited until you were sure you would actually make it back. You seemed awful surprised when you popped in behind us."

"I was, Dean." Cas said tilting his head. "That was why I told you."

"Look, whatever," Dean said. "You're back now, and thank…" he paused and huffed out a laugh at the irony. "Thank God for that."

Castiel stared at the sheets for a second before speaking, still not raising his gaze to meet theirs. "I apologize for arguing with you earlier," he began. "Before we traveled back in time I argued with you, and for that I apologize. If I had gone on my own I would not have been strong enough to defeat Anna."

Sam and Dean looked to one another, unsure if they should tell him about Michael or wait until he was strong enough to handle the news. His breath was still slow and his voice still weak.

"What?" Cas asked obviously picking up on something between them.

"Nothing," Sam said quickly. "So, um, you said you would be weak even if we didn't go with you, but wasn't it because of us that you were –"

"Catatonic?" Dean offered.

"Yes," Cas said. "But I would have been able to function more properly, but now that I see how… weakened I have become I don't think I could have recovered sufficiently in the time allowed."

"Well you're back now," Dean said clapping him lightly on the back and suddenly becoming all too aware of the drops of blood on his coat. "I think it's about time we clean you up." He said getting on his knees and bouncing on the bed like a child to get behind a confused Cas so he could grab the collar of the trench coat and pull it off him with the help of Sam.

"Why?" Cas asked.

Dean scoffed. "'Cause you're covered in blood, dude."

Cas looked down at the coat Sam held in his hands to see the blood along the sleeve and lapel.

"Oh," Castiel said.

"We can get it out, no problem." Sam said looking at the blood with a shrug. "We've had worse."

"I see," he said.

"So, Cas" Dean said shifting back into his old position on the bed leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. "How long you gonna be hung up?" He asked as Sam got up to bring the coat closer to the light so he could scope out the stains.

"Do you wish me gone?"

Both Sam and Dean simultaneously looked shocked. "No!" They said.

"No," Dean repeated. "We just want to make sure you're up to it before you start popping in and out. Trust us when we say we don't want you gone, man, you can leave when we think you're up to it. I mean, why would we want you gone? We're shaping up to be a pretty dysfunctional trio!" He grinned widely.

Cas furrowed his brow. "Is that not… bad."

"Depends on how you look at it, I mean, Sammy and me are pretty screwed up and now so are you, you fit in perfectly."

"Oh," Castiel said, still not quite understanding how dysfunction was good.

"It's like any family," Sam began to elaborate leaning against the counter. "If you think yours is without flaw than something's wrong, we all have screwed up families to some degree. If your one of the lucky ones it brings you closer together, it makes bonds stronger, but sometimes people aren't so lucky and it ends up pulling you apart."

Castiel nodded.

"Yeah," Dean said happily. "You got a pretty messed up family, and not in the good way, I don't know how the hell you came out of that mess. But it's all cool, you need a family, we could use another member of the clan, means your one of us now."

Cas paused. "Thank you," he said after a moment, deciding that this was a good thing.

Sam laughed and Dean clapped his hands. "Excellent," he grinned. "So you don't mind being in the Winchester Clan, then?"

"Not at all, you are… my friends." He replied.

Dean reached up and held his heart in a joking sort of way pulling a dramatic face, it took a moment but Castiel understood the action and because of it a small smile appeared on his face.

"Brothers in arms!" Dean cried triumphantly as Sam continued to laugh at his brother's antics. "Hear that, Sammy? You got yourself another big brother!"

"Oh fun," Sam said with an uncontrollable smile. "I can barley manage the one I have."

"Does this mean I get two baby bro's?" Dean asked.

Both Sam and Cas paused and looked at one another before turning their gazes to Dean. "I do believe," Cas began slowly. "That I am older than you, Dean, and I believe my vessel is as well."

Dean's face fell. "But you only act it in the important critical situations, dude, you're naïve and scream baby bro." Cas looked upon him in confusion once more with his big blue puppy dog eyes. "Just like that!" He pointed at Castiel's face. "Besides, I still need to get you laid."

Sam snorted and covered his mouth as Castiel's face flushed furiously as he redirected his eyes to the towel which he still held in his hands.

"And a little brother," Dean continued, "should never have to go out on quests to get his big brother laid, man, that's just sad. So, by default, I am the eldest Winchester."

"You're a baby brother, Dean." Sam laughed from the counter.

"If you wish to be the eldest, you may." Castiel gave in with a helpless shrug feeling horridly uncomfortable with where the conversation was headed.

"Yes!" Dean punched the air. "The world is right again."

Castiel knew this not to be true but assumed Dean was saying one more human phrase that he had not yet mastered so he remained quiet.

"I," Dean began wrapping his arm around Castiel and waving Sam over so that he could do the same to him. "Am now the proud owner of not one, but two baby brothers."

"Have you been drinking?" Sam asked.

"Little bit!" Dean exclaimed leaning back on the bed. "Besides, Cas, you'll never age, yeah? Being an Angel and all that, so you're as young as your vessel. Angel years don't count."

"That only supports my argument that my vessel is older than you." He retorted.

Dean growled. "Whatever, man, for the sake of telling people I'm older, I've always been older and I will remain older."

"Keep telling yourself that," Sam told him. "One day maybe it'll come true."

Dean either didn't seem to hear him or he simply didn't care. "Let's see what's on TV, we need some relaxation. You like anything in particular, Cas? Sci-fi channel? Movies? History?" He asked and flipped over onto his own bed and grabbed the remote.

"Uh," Castiel stammered unsure of how to answer.

"I'm going in for a shower; I'll be out in a bit." Sam chuckled as he headed back in the bathroom.

"You seem like a History Channel kinda guy, maybe we'll get lucky and they'll be some ancient biblical thing, you can tell me how much of it is actually real."

***

**AN:** As I was finishing this I somehow got in a situation where the three began tallying up how many times they've died, Cas was easy. One. But oh my God, Dean! Like, I didn't know if all those deaths in Mystery Spot counted or not, but I was getting off topic so I said screw that, I don't even know how I got there.

Reviews are candy and make me happy.


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